Sam Altman: Navigating AI's Strange Future, from ChatGPT to Wall Street
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Sam Altman: Navigating AI's Strange Future, from ChatGPT to Wall Street
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Sam Altman has been at the center of several major AI headlines over the past week. After OpenAI’s new video app Sora 2 launched on an invitation-only basis and soared to the top of Apple’s US App Store, Altman appeared on the a16z podcast and warned the world to brace for “really strange or scary moments” as artificial intelligence becomes deeply embedded in society. He specifically called out the likelihood of negative outcomes, like a flood of deepfakes, and said he expects “some really bad stuff to happen” due to the technology Altman’s company creates. The rise of Sora 2 was immediately followed by misuse on social media, with viral deepfake videos depicting public figures including Martin Luther King Jr. and Altman himself involved in criminal acts. OpenAI quickly restricted content creation targeting certain figures after these incidents. The Global Coalition Against Hate and Extremism criticized OpenAI’s policy gaps for enabling rapid proliferation of AI-generated hate speech, including Holocaust denial content on Instagram.
These warnings underscore what Altman calls the co-evolution of society and AI—he argues that public “test drives” are essential to develop resilience and new norms as video and conversational AI become omnipresent. He drew attention to the trust problem, noting that “billions of people talking to the same brain” could have unpredictable consequences on everything from information flows to the democratic process. Altman remains wary of broad government regulation, favoring targeted safety testing especially for future “superhuman” AIs, but opposes strict controls on current models in favor of open evolution.
OpenAI’s headline-making business moves have also been in the news. Fortune reports that OpenAI, under Altman’s direction, is training AI with the help of over a hundred ex-investment bankers, aiming to automate the repetitive, entry-level work in finance—signaling a fundamental shift in how Wall Street may operate. This initiative, called Project Mercury, is seen as transformative rather than simply replacing jobs, with AI predicted to handle much of the heavy spreadsheet legwork while upping the skill requirements for new recruits.
The company also courted controversy this week by defending new features allowing ChatGPT to generate erotic content for verified adults. Altman stood firm on X, pushing back against critics and parental complaints, asserting that OpenAI’s mission is to let “adult users be treated like adults” and not act as “the elected moral police of the world.” Microsoft, once a close strategic ally, sharply distanced itself from this move, highlighting growing rifts within the AI sector’s power players.
On the global stage, Altman made a virtual appearance at GITEX Dubai, where OpenAI’s partnership with G42 for the Stargate UAE supercomputing center was featured as part of the Middle East’s aggressive AI infrastructure buildout. He praised the UAE’s leadership in AI strategy and urged other nations to make AI a national priority.
Culturally, Altman was again the subject of public scrutiny as journalist Karen Hao toured her new book Empire of AI, which delves into both the grand ambitions and hidden impacts of OpenAI under Altman, exploring everything from labor issues to environmental costs. Her book events at major universities and media coverage have helped reignite debate about OpenAI’s societal footprint.
Altman’s biometric identity startup Tools for Humanity also made headlines on TechCrunch, with executives discussing their iris-scanning Orbs and a privacy-focused approach to distinguishing humans from increasingly prevalent AI bots. This week, Altman’s name trended on social media in connection to these launch events, podcast interviews about AI risk, debates on AI erotica, and the rolling controversy over deepfakes—all painting a portrait of a leader at the intersection of innovation, controversy, and the long-term future of both technology and the public trust.
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